Oldest known human fossil outside Africa discovered in Israel

A prehistoric jawbone discovered in a cave in Israel has prompted scientists to rethink theories of how the earliest human pioneers came to populate the planet, suggesting that our ancestors left Africa far earlier than previously thought.

Source

About 200,000 years ago, this jawbone was in the face of a Homo sapien. It’s almost twice as old as any previous remains that have been discovered outside of Africa.

Until recently, several converging lines of evidence – from fossils, genetics and archaeology – suggested that modern humans first dispersed from Africa into Eurasia about 60,000 years ago, quickly supplanting other early human species, such as Neanderthals and Denisovans, that they may have encountered along the way.

However, a series of recent discoveries, including a trove of 100,000 year-old human teeth found in a cave in China, have clouded this straightforward narrative. And the latest find, at the Misliya cave site in northern Israel, has added a new and unexpected twist.

The fossil appears to be a well-preserved upper jawbone with eight teeth. The article states that “sophisticated stone tools and blades” were discovered nearby, suggesting that whoever they belonged to were capable hunters.


Evidence of matting made from plants that may have been used to sleep on was also discovered. Radioactive dating matched the tools to around the same age as the fossil.

Reconstructions of the ancient climate records, based on deep sea cores, show that the Middle East switched between being humid and extremely arid, and that the region would have been lush and readily habitable for several periods matching the age of the Misliya fossil.

The idea of multiple dispersals is supported by recent discoveries such as the teeth unearthed in China, human fossils in Sumatra from around 70,000 years ago, archaeological evidence from Northern Australia at 65,000 years and fossils previously discovered near Misliya dating to 90,000-120,000 years ago.

The scenario also raises the possibility that the eastern Mediterranean may have acted as a crossroads for encounters between our own ancestors and the various other human species, such as Neanderthals, who had already reached Europe.

Next we will have post that say "Oh, wow! That changes everything!"

No, it doesn't. Please look at a map of the Middle East. Even you could walk from Africa to Israel. It's really not that far.

Oh, wow! That changes everything!

a reply to: eisegesis

Thank you for posting this as these things are always of interest to me.

As for the ideas of where humans first came out of Africa and everything else I don't think we will ever have the complete story on that until the ancient alien behind the curtain comes out and explains it to us.

a reply to: eisegesis

Is it a Palestinian ?

originally posted by: rigel4
a reply to: eisegesis

Is it a Palestinian ?

Damn. You beat me to it!
You, my friend are a bad, bad man....

OK. So it doesn't change, well, anything, I suppose.

But it IS interesting, nonetheless. I'm one of those crazies who happens to believe in lots of possibilities. When you consider what we know, or at least what we THINK we know about the origin(s) of our species, it just a bit arrogant to think we have a solid grasp on it. At least considering the magnitude of the timescales involved.

The Universe is old. Mindbogglingly old. (Is mindbogglingly a real word? It came up in spell-check.)

originally posted by: rigel4
a reply to: eisegesis

Is it a Palestinian ?

Nope, the gold fillings were gone. Definitely Israeli...

a reply to: ReggieWrightworth

You stand in the corner

Yeah it changes one thing, the age of the oldest known remains outside of Africa for Homo sapiens

a reply to: schuyler

Next we will have post that say "Oh, wow! That changes everything!"

If you truly live in the moment, it does!

Please look at a map of the Middle East. Even you could walk from Africa to Israel. It's really not that far.

From the oldest Homo sapien remains in Africa to the oldest discovered outside of it. A hair longer than "forty days and forty nights," lol.


files.abovetopsecret.com...

a reply to: eisegesis
I am confused.

Jews are very prominent in the Bible along with their travels to and from, also living in, Egypt. Which is in Africa.

I am sure that there were peoples that traveled throughout Egypt and other countries in Africa, so this should be of no surprise.

a reply to: NightSkyeB4Dawn

The Israelites are more from the area of Babylon and Sumeria. They wandered their way to Egypt from the east, not west.
You have to remember the Jewish people are made of tribes, Israel is one of them, they just dominated the others.

Hence why theres stunning similarities in Sumerian and Babylonian religion and myths in the Torah, or old testament.

Go figure tho, the ones God shunned turned out to survive the longest.

originally posted by: ReggieWrightworth
Oh, wow! That changes everything!

Ahha Omg, ... chicken dinner !!

if the topic were not so interesting, that would be a /thread post.

How the earth has changed over time. Places that are now deserts were one lush lands, and places that were barren, are now rain forests.

I visited Kalbarri here in WA years ago, and on a tour they showed us this massively high ridge, hundreds of meters high, and along the side, there were water marks. At one point the ocean here was so high it was unimaginable. And yet, as the boat drifted, the guy said they had to keep an eye on the water level because they could get stuck in low points.

The middle of Australia, where it is one of the most arid and harsh places, was an ocean once, and the continent was more like a series of islands.

I loved that series, The Future is Wild. Wonder how creatures millions of years from now, will find our jaws in the bottom of a new ocean, or a frozen tundra, or as fragments of a destroyed planet, and think how different things were...

originally posted by: NightSkyeB4Dawn
a reply to: eisegesis
I am confused.

Jews are very prominent in the Bible along with their travels to and from, also living in, Egypt. Which is in Africa.

I am sure that there were peoples that traveled throughout Egypt and other countries in Africa, so this should be of no surprise.

The bible was written by dudes less than 2000 years ago, this fossil is 200,000 years old.

So, god didn't exist then.

do you know story of mosas, exact copy of story of kirishnna. A “south” indian dark skinned king. Whos mythical city is found in “north” of india and carbon dated to atleast 13,000 years old and then indian government block all acces to that submerged city now. Old story. Lot of info out there.

Do you also know ruling class of india, the a tribe of people called Brahmins. 5% of indian population that Practically Runs, owns india. They are closlly related to jews..

Keep an open mind and do a research stuff... you will be surprised.

a reply to: ReggieWrightworth

thanks for making me laugh, LMAO